While in other places women had been prevented from speaking, now they would not hear any but women, and whenever Mr.Channing or Mr.
May attempted to speak he was at once cried down in a good-natured but effective manner.

The women were greatly distressed at this, as these men had been their strongest allies, their leaders, their educators; but their appeals to the audience to listen to masculine eloquence were made in vain.
The petitions with their 10,000 names were presented in the Assembly, and strongly advocated by Mr.Peters, and Mr.D.P.Wood, of Onondaga county, but vehemently opposed by Mr.Burnett, of Essex.

In his speech against the petition asking only that married women might possess their own wages and have equal guardianship of their children, he said: I hope before even this motion is put, gentlemen will be allowed to reflect upon the important question whether these individuals deserve any consideration at the hands of the Legislature.

Whatever may be their pretensions or their sincerity, they do not appear satisfied with having unsexed themselves, but they desire to unsex every female in the land and to set the whole community ablaze with unhallowed fire.

I trust, sir, the House may deliberate before we suffer them to cast their firebrand into our midst.